Typhoon Haiyan has struck with devastating force in The Philippines, and Humane Society International has an experienced veterinary team on the ground in Cebu, the biggest island in the strike zone. While authorities struggle to organize and deliver humanitarian aid, weíre preparing an animal-focused response. Our team has already carried out an assessment of the northeast region of Cebu, and met with local officials to offer its support. Our team is also preparing to visit two other hard hit islands as soon as the needed clearance is received. Weíll work in close cooperation with local and federal officials to provide comprehensive aid for both humans and animals.
For the last four years, HSI has stationed personnel in the Philippines as part of its worldwide street dog relief campaign. Theyíre familiar with the country, theyíre close to its people, and theyíre committed to helping animals in crisis.

In the wake of Typhoon Haiyan’s rampage across the Philippines, people weren’t the only victims caught in its path.

Many animals, pets and strays, are now left wandering stranded through the brutalized streets.

The Humane Society of the United States and its international division are preparing to send experienced veterinary teams to the Philippines as part of an “animal focused response.”

Kelly O’Meara, a director of companion animal projects around the world for the Humane Society, said that their organization has dispatched teams to conduct preliminary assessments of the damage caused by the typhoon, according to its website.

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“The crisis is constantly developing,” she stated, and having an accurate picture of the situation on the ground will be important to save as many animals as possible.
Humane Society volunteers are currently operating on the islands of Cebu and Leyte, and they plan to visit other islands in the disaster zone once they have received the proper authorization.

O’Meara stated that the first step in the Humane Society’s assessment will be to ascertain the number of animals brought to the United Nations relief camps by their owners and what medical treatment they may require.

In cooperation with both U.N. and local Philippine military forces, the teams are hoping to receive additional medical supplies and food from the neighboring island of Manilla.
The teams are preparing to vaccinate the animals under their care to neutralize any infectious diseases they might be carrying, which O’Meara indicated is a continuation of their Street Dog program. The spreading of disease in the aftermath of a major disaster can have horrible ramifications, and the Philippines have had a long-standing public health issue of rabies being transmitted via animal bites.

The second step will address the issue of rescuing the stray animals that have been left wandering aimlessly through the ruined streets, O’Meara said. Some of them are pets that have been separated from their owners during the typhoon, but many more have been without shelter long before the storm hit.

Rescuing the strays will be no small task; the typhoon has caused both terrible flooding and catastrophic structural damage. O’Meara indicated that search and rescue efforts will require boats to navigate flooded areas and excavation tools to clear the debris. This is especially true of Leyte’s capitol of Taclobon; Marine General Paul Kennedy recently observed the city’s ruined landscape via a helicopter flight, saying, “I don’t believe there is a single structure that is not destroyed or severely damaged in some way — every single building, every single house.” The heavy disruption of traffic routes and communication lines has made it incredibly difficult for humanitarian aid to access to the city.

But the Humane Society remains confident that they are up to the challenge. Founded in 1954, they have become the largest nonprofit animal rights organization in the world, repeatedly leading the charge against animal cruelty and exploitation. Even before the typhoon, which is also known as Typhoon Yolanda, the Humane Society was active in the Philippines as part of their Street Dogs campaign, providing aid to stray animals with veterinary relief and vaccinations.

This is also not the first disaster the Humane Society has faced. Their President and CEO Wayne Pacelle wrote in his blog, A Humane Nation about their past experience, “The tsunami in Japan, the earthquake in Haiti, and the Katrina and Sandy emergencies in the United States come to mind when we think about Typhoon Yolanda and its scale and destruction. We need to respond to this tragedy, just as we did the others. We’ll be asking for your support during this great time of need.”

FYI
To donate to the Humane Society of the United States rescue effort in the Philippines, visit HSI.org, or call 202-452-1100 to reach their D.C. Office.